You're Not In On The Joke
by threewishes6716
Summary: Fred and George take one of their pranks a little too far. He doesn't know why, but George can't seem to shake this girl from his mind, especially not when she turns him down for a git like Draco Malfoy.
1. Chapter 1

3rd POV

Fred and George sat across from each other silently. Their eyes flicked from the entrance to the Great Hall and then back down to their plates. Ron had said he would be down for breakfast at exactly ten after eight, and that's when the spell would ignite itself, attacking whoever entered next. With Ron nowhere in sight, and the clock hitting twelve after, the twins were beginning to feel a tiny bit of worry forming in their stomachs.

The door finally opened and a purple cloud of smoke filled the door way. It was an instant reaction to laugh, and for a moment Fred thought they had actually gotten their brother.

"What's going on?" a voice piped up beside George.

"We just got Ron good," Fred informed as he moved his head around, trying to see past Dean as the smoke began to dissipate.

The small voice by George piped up again. "That's not possible guys, I'm right here. I was waiting for you guys at the other end of the table."

The brothers locked eyes across the table before slowly turning to see the smoke completely gone, and where Ron should have been stood Lauren Obst, a fifth year Gryffindor. As everyone in the Great Hall finally took in the sight, laughter erupted all over. Her pale skin was dyed purple and her once brown hair was a wicked Slytherin green. The tall blonde next to Lauren ushered her from the hall quickly.

"You were going to do that to me? Bloody hell," Ron set his plate down next to George.

Hermione approached Fred on the right, potions book in hand. Her lips were in a tight line as she cleared her throat to gather their attention.

"I think you two should be ashamed of yourselves. What'd she ever do to you?" Hermione hadn't been expecting an answer, but the twins responded before she could stomp away.

"It was an accident," George replied.

"A funny accident, but still an accident," Fred finished.

Hermione looked to the smaller Weasley for support, but he merely shrugged his shoulders and continued on with his sausages.

Leaving potions class, Fred and George collected a few lingering high fives for the spell they had cast earlier that morning. Snape scowled disapprovingly, waiting until the last few stragglers were out of the classroom before calling out to them.

"Mr. Weasley and Mr. Weasley, Professor McGonagall would like to speak with you before lunch. I would advise that you see her straight away. Time will only make things worse," he drawled.

The two red heads blinked several times as if not comprehending the words.

"Did I stutter?" Snape questioned and with that they ran into the hall and straight for McGonagall's office.

The door opened itself before George could muster up the nerve to knock. Of all the pranks they'd pulled this was the first time McGonagall herself was dealing with the consequences. As they stepped slowly into the office, they saw their house professor waving her wand slowly over Lauren's face. The last splotches of purple left her skin; a few stubborn streaks of green were stained in her hair. Regardless, the girl hopped from her seat and hugged the old teacher.

She darted past Fred and George without a second glance. Lauren didn't know why they did it and she didn't want to know. Professor McGonagall's hair was slightly out of place and she looked more than agitated as she turned to greet the boys.

"Sit," they stared in disbelief. "That's not a suggestion," she said and they scurried to the two nearest chairs in the room.

"Sometimes I wish you two would try half as hard on your homework as you do on your pranks. That spell took me two hours to reverse and we'll still have to wait for the rest to wear off," she walked with her back straight to the desk, picking up a bright red envelope. "I've already spoken with your mother and she's sent you a reply."

"Is that," George hung his head.

"A howler?" Fred's eyes widened.

"Go on and open it, I'm sure whatever's in there is better than what I could say."

Fred tentatively took the letter from McGonagall, careful not to hold it too close. He kept a hold of the corner as George reached out and tore the seal.

"Fredrick Gideon and George Fabian, you had better be glad I'm not there right now. How could you do that to that poor girl?" Fred almost tried to argue back, but sunk in chair as he realized it would do no good to yell back at a letter. "I don't know how you plan on making up for this, but you will make it up to her. And when you come home your father is going to have a serious talk with you two about maturity."

The small red envelope tore itself to pieces after giving one final aggravated sigh. McGonagall pressed two pieces of paper into their hands as they stood.

"What's this?" Fred questioned, eyes only barely skimming the words.

"These are formal statements barring you from leaving the school grounds for the next month. See to it that you use that time to reflect on your actions."

"It's not bloody fair," Fred said for the fourth time as he sat in front of the fire.

Ron, Hermione, and Harry approached with caution after hearing his frustration.

"What's not fair?" Harry asked.

George sunk a little further into his seat on the couch. "We're stuck on school grounds for the next month because of that teeny tiny prank we pulled this morning."

The common room was mostly empty. A few students were dispersed about the great room, cramming for quizzes and discussing the tri-wizard tournament in hushed voices.

"You forgot the part where we have to do something to make it up to her," Fred spoke bitterly.

Ron and Harry attempted to back away, not wanting to catch any flak for pushing their buttons. Hermione had a much different idea.

"Well I think it's a fair punishment," two red heads snapped towards her as she continued. "And as for making it up to her, isn't it obvious?" As four boys stared at her in awe, she rolled her eyes with a great sigh. "Oh come on. One of you needs to ask her to the Yule ball. I have it under good authority that one of the Durmstrang boys recently dumped her to take a Slytherin to the dance instead."

She pivoted away, brushing past Ron who looked surprised. No one had ever insulted Fred and George like that.

"She has a point," he said, looking over to Harry who simply nodded. "Just ask her to the ball and get it over with."

The two fourth years crept quickly up the stairs to their room after Ron's last statement. Fred stood from the couch, patting his brother's right shoulder.

"I already have a date to the ball, so that leaves you. Good luck," Fred smirked as he nodded to the entrance of the common room.

Lauren was slipping in just as the clock announced curfew. George looked back to Fred for some assistance to find he was already halfway up the stairs. The few others that had once been studying were gone. The only noise George found himself hearing was the sound of his own heavy breathing, and her shoes as the clicked past him without notice.

Fred was normally the one who handled getting them dates and dealing with girls in general. George found himself opening and shutting his mouth a good number of times before he could actually speak to her. Lauren's brown hair was still streaked with green, making her green eyes shine as she flipped her head around and looked right into his eyes.

"What?" she questioned from the foot of the stairs.

She had seen him when she entered, and had planned on saving that fight for a later day, when she realized he was gawking at her like an idiot.

George said several ums and uhs before spitting out his invitation in a rushed sentence.


	2. Chapter 2

Lauren's POV

"?" George asked, nervously tucking his long red hair behind one ear.

I raised a single eyebrow at him before shaking my head and laughing. "No."

I wasn't up more than two stairs when I felt a firm hand tugging me back down. I let it pull me back; George released me as soon as I was standing in front of him. I put on my best bored face as I craned my head up to look at him. Standing at 6'3", he had a good ten inches on me.

"Why not?" I nearly laughed again at the sincerity in his question.

I folded my arms tightly across my sweater clad chest. "You embarrassed me in front of half the school."

"Right, well, that was an accident. And we're really sorry."

I shook my head again and watched him fidget. _The great George Weasley is nervous? Oh this is great._

"Do you remember me asking you to the spring dance we had a few years back?"

As I waited for his answer, I had flash back of myself as a first year, approaching him and mustering up as much confidence as I could to ask George to the dance. He responded by sending me this cute little box which exploded in my face when I opened it. It wasn't a huge deal, and other than that I had really gotten by without being a victim of their usually funny, sometimes cruel pranks.

The light bulb went off in George's head. The corners of his mouth turned up into a smile, he tried to hold it back, but the goofy grin just wouldn't go away.

"Still holding a grudge after all this time?"

I turned to the staircase entrance and hesitated. "What makes you think I don't have a date?"

George smirked at me and leaned against the door jamb. "I have it on good authority that you were dumped for a Slytherin."

I bit my lip. It really wasn't good manners to dump someone the day before the occasion, but I took some pride in knowing I wasn't the only one. Pansy was stolen away from Draco, who promptly asked if I wanted to go with, after of course making sure I was a pureblood.

"Well, tell your good authority that I have a date. I accept your apology, but that is it."

Draco and I had to come to an understanding about my dress. I refused to wear green, but he seemed pretty pleased with himself when I said I'd change the color to black. I was pretty proud of myself when I saw the look on his face as I descended the stairs. Draco Malfoy didn't jaw drop for just anyone.

The dress was stunning, and I couldn't take any credit for that. My mother had picked out the most beautiful silk chiffon gown, with an empire waist, complete with a bow. The original color had been a sea foam green color to match my eyes, but none of the beauty was lost in the black. I had to swap shoes with Amanda, a fourth year Ravenclaw, at the last minute to ensure I wouldn't be taller than Draco.

The smug look on his face proved he was proud of himself as we walked in, arm-in-arm, and received more than a few audible gasps. George was the first to make eye contact with me. I took a little too much pleasure in tightening my grip on Draco's arm as we moved to our seats.

There were no misconceptions about our date. He wanted to piss off Pansy and what better way than to take a Gryffindor. I really just didn't want to go alone. I would've rather gone with someone who I knew didn't want to take me opposed to someone who was asking me out of pity.

The table was more than uncomfortable. The dinner conversation was mostly directed towards Harry and how he would lose the tri-wizard tournament. More than once Draco made a crack about my hair and how I 'knew where my loyalties lie.' My loyalties lay with Gryffindor, but there was no way I was going to say that at a table full of Slytherins.

After seeing Pansy and Poliakoff join the dance floor Draco insisted we join everyone. Much to my surprise he was light on his feet and rather focused. He even gave me his most sincere smile once during the dance when he caught me staring at him in awe.

3rd POV

George resorted to asking one of Ginny's friends for fear of going alone. She of course said yes and was absolutely thrilled to be going to a ball with people at least two years older than her. She was cute, pixie type girl. Her height wasn't an issue George factored in when asking her, but it did cause some problems on the dance floor.

Their dancing was awkward and every time they neared Fred took the chance to poke fun at his twin. And George just wasn't in the mood for it. It's not that he _wanted _to go with Lauren; it's that she turned him down to go with Malfoy. Malfoy! Fred and Ron took every opportunity to remind him of that fact.

He was at his wits end as a new song started. George tapped Fred on his shoulder and told him to just watch.

He pulled his wand from his sleeve as discretely as possible and whispered, "Diffindo."

The charm hit Lauren's back instead of Draco's when she slowed behind him. She turned when she heard a tearing noise. Draco spun too quickly, his feet getting caught in the bottom of her dress and ripping it completely in half. Ginny Weasley released Neville and dove for the dress. Her hands managed to catch it around the other girl's hips.

Lauren froze with her arms crossed over her tan bra. She met George's surprised gaze across the dance floor with pure hatred in her eyes. Ginny shooed Draco off the bottom of her dress and helped Lauren scurry out of the ball.

"Nice date Malfoy. She was a solid seven, but after that performance I'll give her an eight," Goyle snickered as Draco passed the table.

George ran after his sister and Lauren, Draco on his right, and Professor McGonagall not far behind.

"Someone needs to start explaining right now," McGonagall closed the doors behind them.

Draco and George had their jackets off, ready to hand to Lauren. She had the dress pulled up underneath her arms, holding it tight while Ginny held the back together. Lauren reached over for Draco's jacket, never taking her eyes off George.

"It's my fault Professor, I stepped on her dress," Draco confessed.

This was one of the few times Draco had ever felt honestly bad about humiliating someone. He had been enjoying Lauren's company until the incident occurred. She'd put up with Crabbe and Goyle cracking jokes all night and not once did she defend Potter.

"Mrs. Obst?"

Lauren swallowed and looked at the floor. "It was an accident. Draco's foot must've got caught. Expensive dress, cheap fabric I guess," her green eyes met George once more.

"Very well, Mrs. Weasley, do see to it that you escort Mrs. Obst back to her room."

The small ginger haired girl nodded and gently pushed Lauren to the stairs. Once she was sure Professor McGonagall was out of hearing distance, she turned back, confusing Ginny.

"George," he looked up, Draco and he still just standing on the landing silently, "Please just stay away from me. I think you owe me that."

"What'd you do to her?" Draco muttered, his right shoulder bumping the tall red head as he headed back to the ball.

"Why do you care?" he retorted and the younger boy turned back with a devilish grin.

"Why do you?"


	3. Chapter 3

The first note Lauren received was definitely the weirdest. Perhaps it was because the secret admirer had managed to get it on her bed without involving either of her roommates, Lindsey and Ellie. The two girls had stood over her shoulder as she read the anonymous note several times.

"_Meet me tonight at 10 o'clock, just outside the Fat Lady. You won't be sorry." _

Her friends squealed, but Lauren had a feeling she knew who it was from so her reaction was to light it on fire. The two girls gasped as they watched flames engulf the parchment.

"I'm not sneaking out, not for him," she muttered.

Lindsey, a tall girl with a slender frame and longer golden hair that reached her waist, lowered herself onto Lauren's bed. "I mean, I don't usually condone sneaking out, but maybe just this once?"

"Screw just this once," Ellie, the outgoing and rambunctious red head of the group, threw herself on her bed dramatically. "Meet him whenever he wants. I don't care who he is, that is romantic."

Lauren ended the discussion by excusing herself to shower.

* * *

><p>After Herbology the next day, Lindsey and Ellie couldn't stop themselves from beginning a game of what if. They took it as far to say that Lauren may have just thrown away her soul mate and future father of her children. Lauren was in no mood to deal with their ramblings. They had class with Slytherin and ever since the ball Pansy had taken quite the disliking to her, making sure to call her a cow every time she passed to get a new root or herb.<p>

"What are you three gushing on about?" Fred asked as he swooped in, throwing an arm casually around Lindsey, who shook it off quickly.

"Lauren got a note from a secret admirer asking her to meet him after hours," Ellie replied with a wink to Fred.

"An admirer, eh?" George took his spot opposite his brother. "Well go on then. What happened when you met up with him?"

People were still filing out of the green houses, splitting their separate ways. Lauren was hardly concerned with the number of people around though. She stopped walking, causing the rest of the group to make a semi-circle in front of her.

"Well I didn't go, _George. _I burned the note," she left the four, wondering what had gotten her knickers in a bunch.

She just knew it had to have been him. It was either a pathetic attempt at an apology or another prank ready to blow up in her face. Lauren wanted neither.

Not only did she leave her four friends gaping at her comment, but she left none other than Draco Malfoy behind. He began trailing along, slightly angry from waiting up outside the Gryffindor common room for nearly an hour and a half. After hearing her comment, Draco felt a tiny bit hurt.

He wasn't entirely sure when he left the first note why he had done it. He wanted to get back at Pansy a little bit more, and stealing something out from under a Weasley's nose had his name written all over it. But from that one sentence, Draco had declared war. He had no idea that Lauren's disgust for the note had nothing to do with him and everything to do with George, but that didn't matter. He wanted to claim her to prove he could.

* * *

><p>The next note was a little more suspicious seeing as how Draco had signed it. Lauren gasped audibly at the small, heart shaped note on her bed. When she picked it up, the parchment flew open, reading itself in Draco's voice.<p>

"_Let's try this again. When you leave tonight, go up two floors, and to the East side of the building. Open the old Potions classroom. You know which one I'm talking about. I'll be waiting at 10 o'clock." _

This note destroyed itself in a puff of red smoke.

At a quarter past ten, after explaining the situation to her friends, she snuck down to the common room. She inspected the room; satisfied with her glances, she stepped out in the open. Lauren's hand held onto her wand tightly. One thing Draco didn't know was that in her second year, she'd followed two sixth years up to that room, but through the Gryffindor common room. There was a passage that appeared if you pushed on the right bricks.

She felt along the wall, careful to not make any noises. The opening revealed itself quickly and quietly after she found the proper brick to press on.

"Lumos," Lauren whispered as she began up the stair case in front of her.

Briefly she considered turning back. Though she had every intention of telling Draco off, Lauren knew the old room's reputation. It was a sort of couple's rendezvous point.

The pathway ended in the fireplace. She stood there for a few seconds, eyeing the room. The old tables were still lined up; it wasn't hard for her to picture Snape at the front with a stern look on his face. To her far right, Lauren spotted a fidgety Draco with his back to her. He was looking hard at the door, glancing down at his watch. She crawled from the fire place quietly, tip-toeing behind him.

"Twenty minutes late- Stood me up twice- Well I am just going to,"

"You're going to what Malfoy?" Lauren was close enough that her lips brushed his ear as she spoke. She had been careful to hold her breath until the right moment.

He jumped from the table, wand at the ready. His normally perfect hair looked as though he'd been running his hands through one, two many times. Lauren was a tad taken back at the sight of him. His skin was positively ghostly in the pale moonlight. She pointed her wand at fireplace she'd just emerged from and instantly flames began to crackle behind her.

"Where did you- how did you- what?" Seeing that she had made the one and only Draco Malfoy confused made Lauren smile with pride.

"I have my secrets," she said, feeling uncharacteristically cocky.

"More like a Slytherin than I thought," Draco spat back, instantly recovering from her arrival.

Lauren faked a yawn. She turned and walked a few paces away from him, to sit on one of the old, dusty desks.

"So are you going to tell me why I'm here, or are can I go back to bed?" Lauren checked her wrist, counting the seconds on her imaginary watch.

The sound of his footsteps echoed in the room. Each step was firm, without any trace of hesitation. She held her own as he neared her, placing his hands down on the table, on either side of her hips.

"I have a… well let's call it a proposition."

"A proposition? I hate to say it Malfoy, but I'm curious. What exactly are you proposing?" she avoided his gaze directly by smoothing out her skirt.

It was late but the two students still wore their uniforms, wrinkled from the day's wear. Draco smiled smugly as he backed up a few steps to sit on a desk. Lauren counted her breaths before looking at him again.

_Where's your Gryffindor courage? Look at him damn it. He's not going to bite. Ellie said you need to grow a backbone, so grow one!_

After a not so encouraging talk from herself, Lauren met his icy eyes. Forcing herself to say nothing, she raised a perfectly manicured eyebrow, waiting for Draco to continue.

"So as you and most everyone knows, Pansy's not exactly happy with me. And though I won't go as far as to say I miss her absence, it has left me missing some things about our relationship," Lauren was 100% lost. She turned her head to the side and hoped that wasn't all he was going to say.

"That's where you come in. I know you're angry at that Weasley twin, so what better way to stick it to him than by being with me."

She nodded as though she understood, but kept her lips tightly sealed.

"Of course I don't mean in public though. Merlin knows I can't be seen with a Gryffindor on a regular basis. People might get the wrong idea about me," Draco took a moment to straighten his tie before smirking confidently once more.

Lauren couldn't hold it in anymore. She snorted with laughter as she stood from the table. She folded her slender arms across her chest and narrowed her green eyes at him.

"If that's all you've got to convince me to enter some sort of 'friends with benefits' thing with you, then I'll be going."

Draco's mouth hung open slightly as she made her way to the door, ready to shield herself and run back to the common room. It only took another moment for the blonde boy to compose himself and run to catch her. His fingers curled around Lauren's wrist, and with one tug he spun her to face him. Lauren didn't have two seconds to think before Draco's lips were on hers.

She tried to push him away, but the voice in her head was back.

_Oh just kiss back already. You're acting like some kind of Hufflepuff. _

That had done the trick; Lauren took a moment to take it all in. Draco's fingers were pressing into her cheeks, holding her still. His lips were soft, barely chapped. She gasped lightly as he deepened the kiss, tasting mint and chocolate on his tongue. Lauren finally realized her arms were hanging awkwardly on her sides. She tried to pull them up around Malfoy's neck, but he backed away.

Lauren left her eyes closed and pursed her lips. _Too good to be true._

"Why don't you chew on that and see if it's enough of a reason to enter this 'friends with benefits' thing with me?"

She didn't bother opening her eyes until she heard the door close. "Well this is an interesting development," she whispered, turning for the fireplace whose flames disappeared with the flick of her wrist.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Hallo guys. :) This is my first official author's note. I wasn't really going to publish this story, so thanks for the words of encouragement. We're nearing the end of my pre-written work so updates won't be quite this...speedy. I move into school on Wednesday and we won't have internet set up right away so it might be another week after that before there's an update. I hope to have more for you before then. Thanks for the corrections too; I'm horrible with typos when I type late at night. So, until next time. Mischief Managed ;)


	4. Chapter 4

The common room was dangerously quiet the morning after her little rendezvous with Draco; Saturday usually was boring in Gryffindor tower, but Lauren couldn't risk it. She had ushered the girls inside the room, placing a silencing charm on the door. Lauren, Lindsey, and Ellie sat in a triangle on the floor of their dorm room.

"Will you just tell us what happened already?" Ellie gave an obnoxiously loud sigh.

Lauren took a deep breath, crossed her wrists, and held out her pinkies. "This is so top secret; it's going in the vault guys."

Nothing had been put in the vault since Ellie lost her virginity to a Hufflepuff the year before. The two girls gasped, mimicking Lauren's pose quickly and locking hands.

"Draco and I are,"

"You're screwing aren't you? Damn you. I wanted to do it first," Ellie growled.

Lindsey smacked the redhead and nodded to Lauren.

"Well, we're not screwing, as of yet. I doubt it'll get that far, but we're… having fun?"

A silence fell over the room. Ellie broke first, clapping until she slowly stood. The small girl placed both hands on her hips, narrowing her eyes at Lauren.

"I didn't think you had it in you. What else aren't you telling us?"

Lindsey nervously ran a hand through her long blonde hair. She knew it would do her no good to tell them both it was a bad idea, messing around with Draco that is.

Lauren didn't want to sound malicious and tell them she found a little bit of joy in knowing that George wouldn't approve. He clearly cared what she did, for some reason, and that annoyed the brunette to no end. She twisted the last green streaked piece of hair around her finger.

"There's nothing else," she met her best friend's harsh gaze, not breaking it until the rambunctious girl agreed to sit down. "I just feel weird about this, that's all. He's using me to get back at Pansy and I'm not sure what I'm getting out of this."

"Look Lauren, I don't like this, but we all know the reputation Malfoy has. And I really doubt that it is all made up," Lindsey shrugged her shoulders, "I still don't like it, but you're obviously going to go through with it so no reason for you not to enjoy it."

Ellie gripped Lindsey's shoulder, exploding with glee. "Finally, you're on my side. Lauren if there is no other reason to do this then do it for me. I need to live vicariously through you. It's been ages since I had any kind of fun."

The two other girls considered reminding her it had only been a few weeks, but it was hopeless. Lauren removed the charm and led her friends into the common room. Two tall, familiar heads of red hair were waiting on them as they descended the last few stairs.

"Ladies," Fred and George each gave a toothy smile and walked to meet the girls in the middle of the room.

"We were heading to the quidditch pitch to play a scrimmage match with the Ravenclaws," Fred moved closer to Lindsey and she took a small step closer to her friends.

"And we came to see if you would like to join us," George's eyes twinkled as he finally met Lauren's gaze.

She hadn't quite forgiven him for stripping her in front of half the school. Though it wasn't hatred he found in her soft blue eyes, it was something very close, and George had to look away quickly. He had never felt guilty before when one of his pranks went wrong, or somebody got their feelings hurt. Fred had an answer for why his twin was feeling this way, but he wouldn't hear it.

_Stop staring at her you idiot. Maybe Fred was right, but what's there to like about her? She's awfully plain, except for the way she scrunches her nose up when she's really angry; like right now._

George was looking down at his feet, talking to himself when Fred bumped his arm.

"I said, let's get going then," Fred repeated, his brow wrinkling in concern as George started to zone again.

Lauren's arms were folded in protest, but she knew this was Lindsey's only chance to hang out with Fred without Angelina being around so she said nothing. They had only taken a few steps when a folded piece of parchment flew in through the window and landed in front of the brunette girl.

After reading the words a few times Lauren looked at the others who were obviously waiting for some kind of explanation.

"On second thought, I just remembered I had something to do, but you two go on without me," she patted Ellie's arm and made a mad dash for the portrait hole.

George wanted to call out to her, but he couldn't come up with a good enough reason, so he bit his tongue and watched her run past.

Lauren entered the old potion's room the normal way this time, through the door. Draco was nowhere to be found, but his handiwork was obviously there. A few desks and chairs from in front of the fireplace were gone, and in their place were a long green couch and large round area rug. She shook her head as she viewed the sight. Lauren had never pegged him as the type to enjoy the coziness this scene was giving off.

Draco was about to call out to Lauren, but he stopped. She hadn't noticed his entrance. _Payback time, _he silently snickered.

"Rictumsempra!" Malfoy shouted and pointed his wand at the girl's sweater clad back.

She dropped to her knees instantly, not having the energy to stand anymore. The stone floor was cold, and her jeans weren't quite warm enough to be lying there, but she couldn't move. Lauren burst with laughter after a few seconds, unable to do anything but clutch her stomach. Draco strolled closer, taking his sweet time.

He started up a fire, and kicked back onto the couch. His gray eyes watched as Lauren flailed for a minute longer before he whispered the counter charm. It took a moment, but she was quickly on her feet.

"You stupid…ferret!" she wasn't sure what else to call him.

Lauren didn't hesitate to pick up a pillow lying on the couch and smack him roughly with it. The smirk on Draco's face did nothing to hide his amusement; it earned him another good hit with the pillow. In a very childlike manner, Lauren said very clearly that she was afraid of catching his cooties if she sat too close, so she opted for the for a spot on the rug, near the fire.

The room was enveloped in silence. Lauren could feel rise into her cheeks as she thought of being in the same room as Draco; not just that but she knew what would eventually come of them together.

_You don't do this Lauren, back out now while you still have your dignity. Oh shut up you twit, show some Gryffindor courage. _But she did not have that courage. She felt like the same Lauren as always, the one who acted much more like Hermione and Lindsey than Ellie, the one who had gotten her first snog from Kevin Entwhistle and her second from Draco Malfoy, but only by surprise. Without realizing it, five minutes had gone by and all Lauren had managed to do was psyche herself out and stare blankly into the fire.

Her head snapped around at the sound of Draco's frustrated sigh.

"Just come over here already… Please?"

How could she say no to that?

"Did you just say please?" she already sitting on the couch by the time her brain processed the word please coming out of Draco Malfoy's mouth.

"Don't get used to it," he snarled.

He had already shrugged out of his black, and overly dressy, jacket. It lay lazily behind his head. Lauren felt undressed as she eyed him up and down.

"See something you like Obst?"

She gulped under his gaze, willing herself to move, but Malfoy beat her to it. His body leaned into Lauren as she leaned back subconsciously. Draco took this to mean something else entirely and in a swift motion he planted his lips firmly on hers and began to hover over her, forcing her to lie down completely.

"Wait, Malfoy, I-" she was already leaning up on her elbows, blue eyes looking down at her own shirt.

"Don't do this very often? I know; I've heard it before. Though usually, girls don't mean that, but I get the feeling you do," she opened her mouth again and he smirked, cutting her off. "I find it refreshing and amusing. It'll be nice to have something…pure for a change."

The lips that often dawned an award winning Malfoy grin kissed her again, as hesitant as Draco could stand. Lauren quickly forgot that he had looked at her like a piece of steak. She also forgot that, that's not exactly what she wanted to say to him. George and her other feelings were pushed to the back of her mind. Hands like Draco's on your sides and there's really only room for one thought.

Madame Pomfrey muttered to herself as she ran to get a potion. The scrimmage they had set up hadn't exactly been cleared by any professors, so it was quite the surprise when an unconscious George Weasley was carried in by his brothers.

"We're real sorry about this," Fred said to McGonagall as he was ushered out of the way. He waited for a moment, and then realized George wasn't exactly awake to help him out with this one.

"Mr. Weasley, we'll discuss this later. I have more pressing matters to attend to at the moment, but don't think I've forgotten about this," she spun away, nearly colliding with the golden trio on her way out.

George stirred and opened his eyes to see an angry Madame Pomfrey looking down at him. He remembered getting distracted a few times, wondering where Lauren had run off too, but he didn't quite remember how the bludger got from across the pitch to his broom. Whatever he drank was awful, and despite the growing headache, he couldn't get her off his mind.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **I had to end on a kind of cheesy note, I just had to. Forgive me. Also, I don't own any of Rowling's stuff. That should suffice since I forgot. Anyways, thanks for the lovely reviews guys. It makes me happy to see people reading this. 3 I know its a bit heavy on the Draco right now, but George is just getting warmed up. ;)


	5. Chapter 5

"Hey Obst," Pansy Parkinson called as Lauren attempted to leave dinner without yet another confrontation.

It had been weeks since the Yule Ball, but Pansy just couldn't let it go. Never once did she blame herself or Draco, no, it was all Lauren. Her comments had gotten progressively snarkier.

Lauren spun around slowly. Truth be told, she had tried to keep her mouth shut and be the bigger person, but there's only so much one girl can take.

"Yes, Parkinson?"

"Have you seen Draco around lately? He doesn't seem to coming my way as much. I guess he found some slut that will give in even quicker than me."

Lauren's brow furrowed as she processed Pansy's words. She had inadvertently called herself easy, but the poor girl didn't seem to notice. That or she had simply come to terms with that fact.

"I don't know why you're talking to me about it," Lauren growled.

She agreed to let Draco spread the rumor that the two were hooking up to get under Pansy's skin. The Gryffindors had dismissed the _lie _and chalked it up to some very imaginative Hufflepuff with too much time on their hands.

"Aw, come on Obst. Didn't your mom ever teach you to not steal someone's boyfriend?" Pansy batted her eyelashes as Lauren's jaw dropped in slow motion. "Oh that's right. Your mommy is dead."

Lauren's fist made contact with Pansy's nose before she had the time to blink. The throb in her hand shook her from her state of shock and she ran before the Slytherin girl had a chance to retaliate. Her feet guided her into her only place of solitude and refuge: the old Potion's room.

The couch looked inviting, and within seconds the fire was roaring. Her vision blurred with tears as she moved to take a seat. Her blue eyes didn't leave the fireplace for an hour. And only did she look away when she heard footsteps behind her.

Draco's white blonde hair shone in the darkness of the room. He looked as formal as ever, complete with a Slytherin smirk.

"You broke it, you know that?" he laughed lightly and moved to remove his robes. Malfoy didn't catch the glassy-eyed look on her face or the tears clinging to her cheeks. "I think that was brilliant. I've never seen her so at a loss for words, and that's saying something."

When Lauren felt cushion next to her shift, she looked at him again. His brow furrowed at the sight. A look of confusion swept over his face, but it was lacking any sort of sympathy you'd expect from a person.

"What happened to you?"

Lauren inhaled sharply, moving to roughly wipe at her cheeks. "Pansy did, and if you don't mind I was enjoying being by myself."

Her gaze shifted back to the crackling flames. Draco suddenly felt very unsure of what to do. It's not like he took pride in seeing a girl cry, but comfort was not his forte. He never took his chilling stare off of her. In a dramatic huff, Lauren turned to him again.

"If you're just going to sit there and look at me, do you think you could at least do something truly nice for once and just hold me?"

Lauren gave him no time to respond, merely pushing her way under his arm. She liked the warmth of another person next to her. His hold on her remained stiff as they sunk into the corner of the couch. She was enjoying the smell of his cologne, but it wasn't soothing. Lauren liked something less flashy. She found her thoughts drifting away to pine and honey smell.

Angelina gripped Fred's hand tighter as he led them up the dark staircase.

"I swear this will be fun," he whispered, holding his wand far out in front of him.

Tonight would be the night for him and Angelina. The safest way to avoid getting caught or interrupted would be to go to the old potion's room. No one had used it for some months now and Fred was using this to his advantage.

A light was at the end of the hall, and as they approached, the cool air warmed considerably. He put the fire out and hesitantly stepped from the hearth. Lauren lying on top of Draco on a couch in the hook up room is not exactly what he expected to see.

"Bloody hell," he said a little too loudly.

Lauren peeled one eye open before rolling to the cold floor. She instantly knew what it looked like. She was lying on him, cheeks flushed, hair a mess, and clothes wrinkled from sleep.

"Fred, wait, please," she whispered.

He turned back into the fireplace quickly. He ushered Angelina away before she could see anything.

"Who was it?" she asked over her shoulder as they walked back to the common room.

"I, uh, didn't get a good look. I think I interrupted something; just wanted to get out of there," Fred pinched the bridge of his nose. This was definitely not going to end well.

Draco had woken up shortly Fred disappeared. Lauren's flustered appearance confused him to no end. Add in the fact that she wouldn't speak in whole sentences, simply fragments of thoughts that ran through her head, and Malfoy was getting a headache.

"You know this doesn't change anything right?"

The sudden sound of his voice made her stomach jump.

"Pardon?"

"Just don't get used to this," he motioned between them.

Lauren nodded. Draco's willingness to hold her had only been minimal, and it's not as if she was expecting a relationship, but she certainly hadn't expected him to bluntly shoot it down either.

"I'll owl you later," she said, flashing him a small smile, and walking to the door.

She walked to the painting slowly, hoping to buy time before she'd have to explain her story. Once at the Fat Lady, Lauren pushed her shoulders back and took three deep breaths before entering. The common room was quiet and desolate. She sent a silent thank you to Fred, wherever he was, and ran to her room.

Fred sat across from George in the dormitory. Was it really necessary that he told his brother what he had seen? They had never kept anything from each other before, but maybe this was for his own good. No, he had to tell George.

"Gred, can I talk to you?"

Fred nodded, "Feorge, I need to talk to you too."

"Alright, well, me first. I need your help. I know that she hates my guts, but I can't get Lauren off my mind. There's just something about her. I sound mushy now, don't I? Oh man, I'm going to screw this up," as George rambled on, Fred stared down at his feet.

Maybe just this once it would be okay to keep something from him?

A week later, Lauren still hadn't gotten back to Draco. She wasn't entirely sure what to say to him. She didn't really want to continue on with their no strings attached relationship. Her feelings for him hadn't changed, but her feelings for someone else had.

She began to spend most of her time in the library, catching up on homework. It was there that she finally got down to writing Draco. Lauren scribbled out several apologies before just tearing a scrap of parchment and writing, _Tonight, 9 o'clock_.

Someone cleared their throat as Lauren was shuffling her papers around, trying to find a piece of string.

Looking up, Lauren gasped and grabbed her chest. "Oh George, you scared me. I'm glad it's you though, I've been meaning to talk to you."

The red head looked at her with a single eyebrow raised. Hadn't she been around them long enough to tell the difference yet?

"I'm not-"

"Don't interrupt me, please. I just need to get this out. I owe you an explanation. What you saw was not what it looked like. Draco and I are-"

"So the rumors are true then?" his lips pressed into a tight line.

"No, not exactly. I mean, there's some truth there, but not much."

His eyes glanced quickly at the parchment. Fred shook his head and backed away from her table.

"You don't owe me anything Lauren."

He ignored her pleas as he ran to his own room, grabbing a quill and piece of parchment, and then headed straight for the owlery.

**A/N: **Sorry for the lack of updates guys. We don't have internet yet in the dorm so I had to wait until I came home. I hope you guys enjoy it. I tried to make it a smidge longer than usual. It's really about to turn into George/OC story. Thanks for the patience. R&R. Much love.


	6. Chapter 6

"So that's it then?" Draco questioned.

Lauren was leaning against the back of the couch, messing with the cuffs of her sweater. She had tried to be diplomatic, but Draco was taking this a bit harder than she planned. Apparently Pansy wasn't being too forgiving, so Lauren was really his only source of female attention at the moment.

"I tried to tell you once before; I think I've got feelings for someone else. And besides, aren't you the one who agreed that this was nothing?" she shrugged her shoulders and pushed off of the couch. "Look, Pansy will get over it. Tell her you broke my heart."

Draco stepped forward, causing her to lean back against the couch. She jerked when footsteps outside the door grew louder.

"Someone's coming," Lauren whispered, but Draco wouldn't hear it.

"No one's coming. Now, how about a kiss for the road?" he smirked devilishly and leaned in.

She snapped around, her eyes crossing on Malfoy's face as he pressed his lips harshly down on hers. Lauren gripped his shoulders, pushing with all her might. Seeing Draco wouldn't budge, she let herself relax, easing her grip, and waiting for him to get bored.

The door knob jiggled again, but not loud enough to catch either of the teens' attention. Just outside in the hall, Severus Snape had been working at removing the wards protecting the abandoned classroom. He suspected that over the years, students had taken their shot at the protecting the room.

The longer he fought with the spells, the more Snape became infuriated with whoever sent him that letter. He had a few suspicions of who might have written the love note. A few fourth years had been giggling a little too much in Potions the past few weeks. With all of the wards dismantled, Severus took a moment to compose himself before throwing open the door.

Draco's hands had been ready to tug on Lauren's shirt when the door slammed against the stone wall, and she was going to let him. No matter how much she thought she liked George, Malfoy had a way of making her feel… primal.

The skin on skin contact that had them so mesmerized was ripped from them. Snape only had to snap his fingers for the two to fly to opposite sides of the room. Lauren tugged the sweater down over her bare stomach. Her heated gaze desperately avoided the dark teacher.

"That'll be fifty points for being in a restricted room, and another fifty for inappropriate displays of affection from Slytherin and Gryffindor. I expected more from you Ms. Obst," he turned his nose even farther up, if that was possible, and looked to Draco. "And you, what would you father say if he knew you were fraternizing with courageous lionesses?"

The common room was a warm and welcoming sight compared to the cold shoulder she had received from her escorts. Knowing that her potions professor had come very close to seeing her topless and she'd single handedly lost one hundred points from her house in three seconds dampened Lauren's mood further.

She hesitated in the doorway, trying to brush the panicked tears from her face. Lauren thought after the prank and the Yule ball her life couldn't get any more embarrassing. Her breath was shaky as she glanced into the common room. Fred and Lindsey sat on a love seat, looking at his gag gifts collection. Ellie was lying on the rug with her muggle magazines surrounding her.

The second Lauren's eyes lay on George she understood. There was one person who had been trying to mess everything up for her, and just when she was beginning to have feelings for George.

She ran in, forcefully wiping the last bit of tears, and pushed George off the couch from the back.

"Hey, what the hell?" he stabilized himself, turning around.

All eyes in the room were on Lauren. She couldn't erase the scowl from her face if she tried. Her green eyes narrowed in on George just before she leaped across the couch, pushing him to the ground.

"I know it was you. Why did you turn me in to Snape? I was breaking it off you good for nothing, despicable, git," her tiny fists pounded on his chest until Fred yanked Lauren off his twin. "I don't know how you found out, but it was none of your business."

By this point Fred was backing up to his original position beside Lindsey. Ellie jumped to join them. Lauren was visibly shaking.

"Maybe we should," Ellie jerked her head back and ran for the dormitory stairs.

Fred and Lindsey scurried quickly after her, not wanting to see the explosion. George's hands were deeply into the pockets of his trousers. Despite her anger, he thought she looked quite cute, and that's why his hands were tucked away. He didn't trust himself to not reach out and tuck away the stray hairs that were flying around as she began to pace in front of him.

"I just, I don't get you; I really don't. If you hate me so much, then why not just avoid me? Why on earth would you torment me like this? I was just breaking it off because," but she stopped short.

Lauren had no desire to give George the satisfaction of knowing she was beginning to like him, or was before she made the connection between her interruption that night and him. Her fingers nervously fiddled with a piece of hair as she worked on breathing normally.

The fire was burning George's bum, but he was afraid to get any closer. He watched as her emerald eyes squeezed shut, and she bit down on her lip. Lauren thought to transfigurations, trying desperately to remember something McGonagall had taught them that would be acceptable for revenge. Her shoulders sagged in defeat.

His foot got caught on the rug as he rushed forward. George's tall, lanky body collided, full force with Lauren and the two landed on the floor with a thud. He managed to catch himself and not completely crush her on impact.

"What do you think you're doing? Are you mad?" Lauren brushed her long, brown hair from her eyes and made a move to sit up.

"I just wanted to do this."

George went down into a lower push-up, his arms shaking all the way down. Lauren was frozen with shock. George Weasley was stiff as a board against her body, pressing his lips against hers in what can only be described as a chaste peck. She shoved him off of her quick, moving to sit with her back against the couch.

"But you hate me," she whispered, pinching the bridge of her nose.

Life was so much simpler when she just worked on Ancient Runes' papers with Lindsey and fantasized with Ellie. Even being with Draco was easy. There were so many things to dislike about George: he needed a haircut, his world revolved around pranks, that stupid way his lip curled when he had an idea, and how much he relied on his brother. But those were also the things Lauren was getting attracted to. She liked how his shaggy, red hair framed his face, how you could count on him for a laugh, how his lip curling showed off his brilliant smile, and most importantly, how devoted he was to Fred.

When she opened her eyes back up, George was inches from her face. He was waiting patiently for her to get out of her head and back to reality. He wrapped one hand around her neck, forcing the eye contact to continue.

"I never hated you," he said very plainly, as if he were commenting on the weather.

**A/N: **So, it's been a while guys. School is crazy! We're about to dive into George/OC stuff. I'm really excited. Sorry it's short. I'll be updating again soon.


	7. Chapter 7

There was a fire in her belly and pep in her step when Lauren walked to breakfast the next morning, though the rest of the school was dragging themselves, bored with waiting for the next Tri-Wizard task. After George's confession, she had to control herself from jumping him right there in the commons. She had to remind herself this relationship, or whatever it was, new and not just like the one she had with Malfoy. Lauren had given George a chaste kiss, excusing herself to bed before commencing the jumping and giggling. He had disappeared up the opposite stairway, taking the stairs three at a time.

All eyes from the Gryffindor table were on her. She supposed they found out about the loss of one hundred points. No one would dare say anything; they knew she'd get the points back in class the next week. For now it was Saturday, one week until the next task, nine hours since she'd nearly broken it off with Draco, and eight hours since she'd been the happiest in a long while.

George eyed her, sheepishly smiling over a plate of eggs and sausage; Draco, however, scowled at her as if he wasn't a willing participant in the point loss. His father no doubt had learned of her little affair by now. That wasn't Lauren's problem anymore, though. No, she only had to worry about getting to know George even better.

She took her seat across from a sad looking Lindsey. Before she could ask, Fred tickled Angelina causing her to laugh louder than necessary. Ellie looked ready to fling her fork at his head. He had stringing Lindsey along for about as long as he'd been dating Angelina, and Lindsey just couldn't let him go. George nudged Lauren, pulling her from her thoughts and offering her a blueberry muffin, her favorite.

Lauren would be lying if she said she wasn't enjoying Draco's misery a bit. He lost to a Weasley, and everyone knew that would kill him. She ate slowly as the twins chatted to her about the day's plans. They had another Quidditch scrimmage planned, refereed by Madame Hooch of course. Quidditch hadn't been happening due to the Tournament, and the boys, and a few girls, were growing restless. Slytherin versus Gryffindor, naturally, the whole school would be in attendance.

"So, uh, are you going to come cheer me on?" George asked in a low voice.

He knew Quidditch was not her favorite sport, but he had his fingers crossed under the table.

"I do have a three feet essay due on Tuesday," Lauren grinned and nudged his side with her elbow, "But I think maybe I'd like watching more if I was watching someone I, well, like."

George slung an arm around her shoulder as the stood and left.

"Well, if it isn't the new golden couple. I'm sure McGonagall will be happy with the new Gryffindor mascot, a couple of losers." Pansy stood only a few feet outside the door to the Great Hall. "Draco's going to wipe the pitch with you."

Lindsey pulled Ellie from the confrontation while Lauren tugged on George's arm. Fred and Angelina were nowhere to be found, but Draco Malfoy chose that moment to swoop in next to Pansy. He pulled her into his side by the waist.

"The blood traitor's found himself a new girlfriend, although, I'm not sure girl is a proper description. Maybe_ it _would be better."

Lauren knew that shouldn't have hurt as much as it did, but she stopped pulling on George all the same. She tried not to look shocked. A thousand insults and retorts ran through her head, and they all ended in George being upset.

"George," Lauren whispered once she'd gotten a hold of her wits, "They're just a couple of stupid gits. Let's go."

"Don't talk about her like that. Talk about me all you want, but leave her out of it."

The smirk she once—and if we're being honest still did—found attractive appeared. Lauren could practically feel the rage it caused in George.

"I think I have more of a right to talk about her like that, if you know what I mean, Weasley."

Lauren was the first to fling herself at Draco, not George. He grabbed her around the waist, pulling her from the blonde.

"Knew you couldn't keep your hands off of me, sweetheart," he called as they walked towards the door to the Quidditch pitch.

There were many silent footsteps before either spoke. Lauren had been hoping to delay this conversation for as long as possible, but that was a bit too much to hope for. He hadn't put his arm around her again, probably feeling a bit of left over anger, but she wasn't sure.

"Look, George, I don't know what to tell you. We both know he and I were, um, together, but I don't want this to get between us. Whatever this is or will be," she stopped and gestured between the two of them.

A few kids ran past, Luna twirling in a circle around the couple before continuing on.

"I can't do this right now; I've got a game to play," his red hair flopped in his eyes before George took a step towards the pitch.

"Stop, we need to do this right now. You make me happy, and it's not even been a day, but I've liked you for a while. I want this to work."

"What do you want _me _to tell _you_?" He crossed his arms. "Last night, when you came in upset, and we had that moment… I just, I was impulsive, and Malfoy wasn't around. Now, I don't know if I can look at you without thinking about you with him. Maybe we should just give this some time."

In less than twelve hours Lauren had managed to get the boy she wanted and have her sort of ex-boy ruin her relationship—could she even call it a relationship?—with the boy she wanted. Only in high school could life happen and be ruined so fast. And only then could it seem like the end of the world.


End file.
